EU invests EUR 4 bn in large infrastructure projects

(BRUSSELS) - EUR 4 billion of EU funds is to be invested in 25 large infrastructure projects - in areas such as transport, research, environment and energy - in 10 Member States, the Commission announced Tuesday.

“These 25 projects are as many examples of how the EU is working to improve everyday life for our citizens from better drinking water to faster rail transport and modern hospitals," said the Commissioner for Regional Policy Corina Cretu: "In the current budget period, I have adopted 258 large infrastructure projects worth €32 billion of EU funds; they are, in a way, the ambassadors of Cohesion Policy and I'm proud of each and every one of them."

More secure and affordable energy in Bulgaria

€33 million of EU funds will finance the construction of a 182-km
cross-border gas interconnector between Komotini, Greece, and Stara
Zagora, Bulgaria. The pipeline is a European Project of Common Interest. The two countries' gas systems will be linked for the first time,
diversifying energy sources in the region and increasing energy
security. With more competition on the gas market, consumers will enjoy
lower prices.

Smoother road and rail connections on the Trans-European Transport Network in Czechia

First, €76 million is financing upgrades on the rail corridor between
Prague and Pilsen. Works include new or reconstructed tracks between
Rokycany and Pilsen, shortening travel time by half on this section and
reinforcing the attractiveness of Pilsen as a regional economic centre.
Then, almost €75 million is invested in a road from Nebory to Bystrice,
as part of a major link between the Czech D48 motorway and the Slovak D3
motorway.

A modern research campus in Jena, Germany

In Jena, Thuringia, the Friedrich-Schiller-University's facilities
will be given a makeover with almost €84 million of EU funds. The
project will finance the construction of two buildings: the university
data centre and the faculty of mathematics and IT science, benefitting
18,000 students.

Efficient public services in Greece and affordable energy in Crete

Almost €135 million is invested in the "Syzefxis II" telecom system,
which will eventually unify the entire Greek public administration
network. An additional 600,000 civil servants and 34,000 premises will
be connected to the system, resulting in important economies of scale
and better services to the population.

Then, almost €95 million will fund the construction of an electricity
interconnection between the island of Crete and the Peloponnese
peninsula. It includes two 135-km submarine power cables. This project
will lower the costs of electricity in Crete, by replacing expensive oil
fired generation units with electricity from mainland Greece.

€105.5 million will finance upgrades on the southern section of the
Budapest ring road, with reconstructed roads, bridges and new cycle
paths. This project will shorten travel time and improve road safety for
the 90,000 vehicles circulating daily in the area. In addition, it will
reduce congestion by diverting traffic away from the city centre.

Better rail transport in Sicily, Italy

More than €358 million of EU funds will help extend the Circumetnea
railway line operating in Catania, Sicily, with eight new stations and
rolling stocks. This project will help reduce congestion on the road
network and will promote clean mobility in the region.

Better drinking water in Malta

Almost €74 million will provide Malta, Gozo and Comino islands with
better drinking water, enhanced security of water supply and improved
groundwater resource management. The project will benefit the entire
population of the country. EU-funded works include an underground tunnel
and the extension of water and wastewater distribution networks.

Better healthcare and greater connectivity in Poland

In the field of healthcare, almost €61 million of EU
funds will help purchase new equipment for the University Hospital of
Kraków, Malopolskie, benefitting over 3.3 million inhabitants. Then, €56
million will help build a new hospital complex for the Regional Centre
of Children Health in Poznan, Wielkopolskie, centralising healthcare
services, extending facilities and buying new equipment. The Centre will
be equipped with an emergency care department for children and will
enlarge its orthopaedics, traumatology and rehabilitation departments.

Then, in the field of maritime transports, €155
million will increase the safety of operations in the Port of Gdansk,
Pomorskie, with upgraded breakwater structures. Almost €65 million will
help build or modernise quays and hydro-technical engineering structures
in the Port of Gdynia, increasing traffic safety.

In rail transport, €126 million will help build the
Szczecin Metropolitan Railway, connecting the main cities of Western
Pomerania including Stargard, Police and Gryfino and benefiting 687,000
inhabitants. Almost €39 million will help purchase 16 electric train
units, which will operate in the Warsaw agglomeration. Almost €58
million will help modernise 152 passenger carriages and purchase 20
electric locomotives, which will circulate on the routes operated by PKP
Intercity in the country.

Finally, in road transport, Cohesion Policy will
finance the construction of a section of the S7 express road linking
Warsaw to Grójec (€129 million), a section of the A2 motorway between
Warsaw's southern bypass and Minsk Mazowiecki (more than €78 million), a
section of the S3 express road towards the Czech border in Lower
Silesia (€105 million) and a section of the Olsztyn bypass in
Warminsko-Mazurskie (€87 million). These projects, all located on the
Trans-European Transport Network, will increase road safety, reduce
travel time and enhance territorial cohesion in the country.

A modernised Northern railway line in Portugal

The Ovar-Gaia section on the Northern railway line, part of the
Trans-European Transport Network, will be modernised with almost €119
million of EU funds. Passengers will enjoy shorter travel time, more
comfortable conditions and increased safety on this axis.

Smoother transport in Bucharest environmental protection and water management in Romania

€1 billion will help upgrade Bucharest's ring road by expanding
several of its sections, doubling the lanes in each direction. It will
also support the construction of a 51-km section of the southern part of
the new Bucharest Orbital Motorway. Still in the Romanian capital, €97
million of EU funds will finance works on the entire metro line 2, with
new tracks and rolling stocks.

Then, almost €603 million will support the protection and
rehabilitation of the highly touristic area of the Black Sea coastline
in the Constanta County. The project includes cliff consolidation works,
replenishment of sand on the beaches, biodiversity preservation
measures (artificial reefs and repopulation of marine species) as well
as monitoring equipment.

Finally, the EU will invest more than €135 million in better drinking
water and waste water systems in the Timis County. An additional 15,000
inhabitants will be connected to the drinking water network and almost
380,000 people will enjoy better drinking water.